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train

SunRail celebrated its one-year anniversary of service at the beginning of the month, as ridership fell well below the daily average goal once again in the month of April. The first year featured a lot of hype and public relations, but reality reveals many challenges after a mixed performance year.… [read more]

SunRail ridership went up during the month of March, even outside of various special “free” service days. The March Conductor’s report showed an average of 4,041 boardings per day for SunRail. The bump was a welcome, but still shy of the first-year goal of 4,300 riders per day. The March ridership… [read more]

SunRail’s “free” New Year’s Day service was a special request to run trains for the Buffalo Wild Wings Citrus Bowl but attracted few riders during the holiday event. The special service was sponsored by the Orlando Venues and Orlando Citrus Sports, but it will be City of Orlando taxpayers who are… [read more]

SunRail has a bigger problem than low ridership. SunRail has a revenue-expense problem, and local taxpayers will be on the hook in just a few years. With Orange County Mayor Teresa Jacobs and Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer prematurely pushing for expansion and greater expenses, it should make the community wonder if anyone is… [read more]

Another new hotel development has been proposed for downtown Orlando, this time with developers focusing on Church Street Station. The planned redevelopment would also include a new SunRail train platform, which would relocate the brand-new southbound platform that was just built across the street. This would make the project the first… [read more]

As opposition continues building in counties down the Florida coast between Orlando and Miami, the controversial All Aboard Florida proposal is also getting more scrutiny from media. WFTV Channel 9 Investigates exposed more details about the “casino express” high-speed train project. The excellent report connects a lot of dots and further illustrates… [read more]

As SunRail prepares to officially begin service on May 1, many questions around its potential success or failure remain. But one thing is sure, people need to let go of the idea that SunRail is a mega transportation solution or magical fix for Central Florida and Orlando, as Mayors Dyer… [read more]

Over the weekend, I got a chance to swing by Universal Orlando and check out the latest developments with the construction of London and Diagon Alley for the Harry Potter expansion. It’s hard to remember where Jaws used to be when you look at the new King’s Cross Station and… [read more]